This will likely be the only full price game I buy this year other than Forbidden West (which I've played through 3 times already, but since that I've mostly been enjoying the backlog I got from PS+ Extra) and if it's even half as good as the last one it'll be worth every penny.
The original started during prohibition (1930), but it would be great to see what happened between Sallieri and Morello before then (you see a photo at some point during when they were best mates, so a few missions before some great falling out, followed by all out war until somehow the city is divided up, part way though all of that you get the start of prohibition). The only issue with that idea is that you already know how it ends.
If Sony were to take their latest Xperia phone, weld a controller to it, and call it the Vita 2 then people would be crying out in celebration, but because they're targeting hardware people already own, the same people are in uproar.
I'm up to Chapter 3 of Red Dead Redemption 2, and while I'm still not seeing it for the masterpiece everyone says it is, it's worth playing.
My thumbs are feeling the punishment though, even with the accessibility options set there's just so much tapping. Crafting is a real chore, and I just wish you could say "I want to make 100 split point rifle rounds" and it fades to black, comes back with time having passed as you finish making the last one.
@Th3solution to be fair it used to go towards things like education, but over the past decade of Tory rule anything useful has been stripped back until it's worryingly underfunded, without the taxpayer seeing any real reduction
@Th3solution nah, the NHS, along with State Pension, are funded by National Insurance, which comes out of earnings, VAT goes into the tax pot along with the rest of them, and pays for things like road repairs, expense fraud and paying ministers' mates contracts that they never fulfill so they'll offer those same ministers cushy board positions when they're voted out of office
@Royalblues 3rd party are just as susceptable unless they use hall-effect sensors instead of potentiometers. It used to be so bad that there would be little calibration knobs next to the stick so you could mechanically reset the zero point
@Nexozi Ah, I think you might be missing the context of them having already announced that it'll release Early 2023. It probably would have been clearer if I'd spelled out that that's what the 'if' was referring to. My bad!
@Nexozi No, I said I don't care about release date, just price - it's always good to see progress, but it doesn't mean anything to me. I'm not sure how you read what I wrote and came to that conclusion.
I'll be keeping up with the news obviously, but I'm in the middle of a house move so it's hard to prioritise something that I won't have a usable space to set up in for a while.
I've been incredibly sceptical of this game from the get-go, and honestly this gives me some hope that the gameplay might make up for some of the general jankiness that's so obviously on display (Nothing really seems to fit together - there's a lot that's individually ok or maybe even impressive, but it doesn't mesh well with the stuff it interacts with, which makes the whole much less than the sum of its parts), but I still think nothing short of it turning out to be a gameplay revolution (which it doesn't look like) will make up for voice acting that makes me want to claw my own ears off.
And speaking of voice acting - did they use text to speech for the presenter, or did they really find someone that unable to emote and make the game seem interesting?
I'm glad that this shows progress towards launch, but currently it doesn't mean anything to me. I just need a price, release date doesn't mean much to me if it's the first half of next year, as I'm likely to wait until my birthday in July anyway.
Currently I wouldn't buy it, I already have two controllers, but if one conks out I'd happily pay up to £100, but more than that I'd likely pay up to £125 if both of my controllers died.
The thing that would change that is if they supported multiple switchable pairings, but they've not advertised it, so I'll assume they don't.
I wouldn't worry too much about hall effect sensors, some third party will release a replacement module, like with the Steam Deck and the Switch
@Jtheripper because this is commodity hardware it'll come down in price as the market dictates.
The fact that the latest computers support gen 5 and this is gen 4 means that within a year or two things will come down further. The reason why XBox storage expansion is cheaper per terabyte is because it's only gen 3, but as the fab processes move on then gen 3 storage isn't going to get any cheaper (if anything it'll be more expensive due to lower manufacturing volume), so while Microsoft's strategy looks better at the start of the generation, Sony's will pull ahead significantly soon.
Backwards Compatibility means that you'd be able to use gen 4 and 5 chips in either console, but on Xbox there's the added complication of adapting it to their proprietary interface, and both consoles will be limited to the speed of their storage interface. This means that Xbox Series is limited to gen 3 speeds (which it currently reaches) and PlayStation 5 is limited to gen 4 speeds (which it's approaching, and has a theoretical maximum speed of double gen 3) so when gen 5 starts to become mainstream (with again double the theoretical speed of gen 4) then NAND packages and controllers that saturate both previous generation interfaces should be pretty cheap, meaning that you're paying the extra with Xbox to get half as fast storage in a proprietary form factor.
Playing Red Dead Redemption 2 before it disappears from Plus Extra. Can't say it feels like the masterpiece everyone says it is yet, but I'm only on chapter 2 so far.
Wake me up when a PS5 exclusive makes it to PC within 2 years - we get the same outrage with every PC port of a PS4 game, and people prophesising day one PC releases of first party games.
Not that I'd be against it personally, but I don't think monetising the previous generation's games to people who haven't bought the console when given almost it's entire lifespan in which to do so speaks to that as a strategy.
For me Premium was never going to be a good value proposition, and Extra is where it's at - I haven't owned a PlayStation before the PS5 so I'm not interested in nostalgia from games I either never played, or are in my Steam library already, and I'm not interested in streaming stuff I could just as easily play locally.
That said, those are both things a lot of people are interested in. I would guess there are a lot of awkward issues with who holds copyright for a lot of the back catalogue, but one would hope that they'd be adding first party stuff every month until their entire catalogue is on there. If it was all there day 1 then fair enough, but I don't get the impression that's the case?
The streaming isn't nothing though, as for those who share a PlayStation, or even don't have one, it means you can play on PC.
I'm not really looking forward to playing these (along with 20+% of readers), but it's fine, there's tonnes in the library it released with which I'm yet to play, some of which expire soon, and this month's Essential was pretty good too, so when you consider what I have access to this month, rather than what's added, it's pretty good)
It's pretty, sure, but how buggy is this version going to be? I love how easy it is to get going with Unity but it has never been as a stable or extendable as Unreal, and once you've written everything in C# it's hard to port to another engine so you're locked in.
Double tapping the home button was a new one to me, and I'd forgotten I could change the capture buttons. Other than that the only one I didn't know is one I'll never use (changing your online status)
Meanwhile I have a clip so I can mount my phone to my "spare" Dualsense controller. Works great including all the adaptive triggers and haptic feedback
I've been playing Empire of Sin via Plus Extra. It feels like it's so close to being a good game but it's missing something I can't quite put my finger on. It's odd because I love turn based tactics, and I love the 20s mob theme.
@Ogbert this exactly. Not to mention how environmentally irresponsible NFTs and proof-of-work cryptocurrency is, when for most things all you need is a simple database (sure that centralises it, but for games you need the developer to make stuff part of the game anyway).
A year can also be any period of 12 months, Develop: Brighton run theirs in the summer, rather than the winter, and consider the games released during the preceding 12 months.
Edit: just saw that themightyant already made this point, but somehow not all the comments had loaded.
I am only subscribed to Extra, rather than Premium, because almost everything that appeals to me is on Extra. There's maybe 2 games on Premium currently that I want to play more than anything in my existing backlog, so either when I'm done with my backlog, or more likely a couple of months before I'm due to renew, I'll upgrade to Premium, play those, and then let me sub lapse and resub back at Extra, which is astonishingly good value for money.
@The_Moose An opinion piece in an American publication by a Conservative commentator? You're going to have to try harder.
It's widely acknowledged that they're Social Democracies and I have multiple friends who live in Denmark, Sweden, Norway who either moved there, or returned there after spending years in the UK, specifically because of Socialist welfare policies and more representative democratic systems.
@nessisonett do you think it's worth pointing out to @GreatAuk how much better Nordic countries are doing under Democratic Socialism versus our Conservative and Unionist Party's austerity policies that have resulted in one of the largest tax burdens in the world, rampant inequality which UN special rapporteurs have described as human rights violations, and the most corruption the UK has ever seen?
@jcvandan it's certainly a title where I'll wait for a deep sale or an appearance on Extra. If I was that interested in playing it [enough to pay those prices] I'd have done so on Steam years ago.
Personally I'm really hoping that there will be hybrid games where, for instance in a third person Open World I can play the majority on a flat screen, but if I get into a car I can put on my headset and have a vr driving experience (because I have yet to pay an Open World game in which I can reliably do a three point turn, reverse around a corner, bay park or parallel park without hitting things or mounting the curb, despite doing these things on a regular basis. Driving fast should feel dangerous, etc etc etc)
@munstre I think the main reason it's hanging around in the top 10 is that a large part of its market want to play it on PS5, maybe don't realise they'd get a free upgrade when they can find a console, and this means that instead of selling most of its units in the launch window, it's a much slower drip than most franchises get to see. Similar to how Miles Morales was right up to the announcement the it would be free with Plus Extra.
Obviously none of us can know for certain, but given how few bundled units there are out there in any given month, and the success of the first game, it seems like a much more likely scenario.
I'd like them to add some single player games, something that's not already available or something that's due to expire soon from the higher tiers (like Red Dead).
Knowing Sony's current way of doing things though, it'll probably be Horizon Zero Dawn, an obsolete Mortal Kombat or Street Fighter game, and something full of microtransactions, i.e worse than nothing.
Comments 1,551
Re: Microsoft, Sony Signed Agreement to Keep Call of Duty on PlayStation for 'Several More Years' Beyond Current Contract
@TheElectroFunky I see the confusion now, when you said "taking over" you meant "overtaking"
Re: God of War Ragnarok's Enhanced Shield Mechanics and Weapon Signature Moves Detailed
This will likely be the only full price game I buy this year other than Forbidden West (which I've played through 3 times already, but since that I've mostly been enjoying the backlog I got from PS+ Extra) and if it's even half as good as the last one it'll be worth every penny.
Re: New Mafia Game Confirmed in Development
@Kairu maybe they want to hire people? Or they're outsourcing something and expect it to leak anyways, and this way they control the news?
Re: New Mafia Game Confirmed in Development
The original started during prohibition (1930), but it would be great to see what happened between Sallieri and Morello before then (you see a photo at some point during when they were best mates, so a few missions before some great falling out, followed by all out war until somehow the city is divided up, part way though all of that you get the start of prohibition). The only issue with that idea is that you already know how it ends.
Re: PlayStation Acquires Savage Game Studios, Focusing on Mobile Games
If Sony were to take their latest Xperia phone, weld a controller to it, and call it the Vita 2 then people would be crying out in celebration, but because they're targeting hardware people already own, the same people are in uproar.
Kinda weird, no?
Re: Beer Brewing Sim Knocks Back a PS5, PS4 Release Date
This seems like a great game to chill out to, preferably with a pint by your side
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 441
I'm up to Chapter 3 of Red Dead Redemption 2, and while I'm still not seeing it for the masterpiece everyone says it is, it's worth playing.
My thumbs are feeling the punishment though, even with the accessibility options set there's just so much tapping. Crafting is a real chore, and I just wish you could say "I want to make 100 split point rifle rounds" and it fades to black, comes back with time having passed as you finish making the last one.
Re: Aloy Confirmed for Horizon Netflix Show, Helmed By Umbrella Academy Showrunner
@Snick27 hopefully it'll continue to be aware of societal issues, as is the role of media.
Aloy always seemed ace panromantic to me.
Re: Why the PS5's Price Hasn't Changed in USA
@Th3solution to be fair it used to go towards things like education, but over the past decade of Tory rule anything useful has been stripped back until it's worryingly underfunded, without the taxpayer seeing any real reduction
Re: Why the PS5's Price Hasn't Changed in USA
@Th3solution nah, the NHS, along with State Pension, are funded by National Insurance, which comes out of earnings, VAT goes into the tax pot along with the rest of them, and pays for things like road repairs, expense fraud and paying ministers' mates contracts that they never fulfill so they'll offer those same ministers cushy board positions when they're voted out of office
Re: Poll: How Much Would You Pay for the DualSense Edge PS5 Pro Controller?
@Royalblues 3rd party are just as susceptable unless they use hall-effect sensors instead of potentiometers. It used to be so bad that there would be little calibration knobs next to the stick so you could mechanically reset the zero point
Re: PSVR2 Playable for the First Time at TGS 2022
@Nexozi Ah, I think you might be missing the context of them having already announced that it'll release Early 2023. It probably would have been clearer if I'd spelled out that that's what the 'if' was referring to. My bad!
Re: PSVR2 Playable for the First Time at TGS 2022
@Nexozi No, I said I don't care about release date, just price - it's always good to see progress, but it doesn't mean anything to me. I'm not sure how you read what I wrote and came to that conclusion.
I'll be keeping up with the news obviously, but I'm in the middle of a house move so it's hard to prioritise something that I won't have a usable space to set up in for a while.
Re: Watch 10 Minutes of Forspoken PS5 Gameplay in New Overview Video
I've been incredibly sceptical of this game from the get-go, and honestly this gives me some hope that the gameplay might make up for some of the general jankiness that's so obviously on display (Nothing really seems to fit together - there's a lot that's individually ok or maybe even impressive, but it doesn't mesh well with the stuff it interacts with, which makes the whole much less than the sum of its parts), but I still think nothing short of it turning out to be a gameplay revolution (which it doesn't look like) will make up for voice acting that makes me want to claw my own ears off.
And speaking of voice acting - did they use text to speech for the presenter, or did they really find someone that unable to emote and make the game seem interesting?
Re: PSVR2 Playable for the First Time at TGS 2022
@zebric21 It is just a brand new article?
I'm glad that this shows progress towards launch, but currently it doesn't mean anything to me. I just need a price, release date doesn't mean much to me if it's the first half of next year, as I'm likely to wait until my birthday in July anyway.
Re: Poll: How Much Would You Pay for the DualSense Edge PS5 Pro Controller?
Currently I wouldn't buy it, I already have two controllers, but if one conks out I'd happily pay up to £100, but more than that I'd likely pay up to £125 if both of my controllers died.
The thing that would change that is if they supported multiple switchable pairings, but they've not advertised it, so I'll assume they don't.
I wouldn't worry too much about hall effect sensors, some third party will release a replacement module, like with the Steam Deck and the Switch
Re: One of PS5's Best and Most Popular SSDs Now Has an Even Better Successor
@Jtheripper because this is commodity hardware it'll come down in price as the market dictates.
The fact that the latest computers support gen 5 and this is gen 4 means that within a year or two things will come down further. The reason why XBox storage expansion is cheaper per terabyte is because it's only gen 3, but as the fab processes move on then gen 3 storage isn't going to get any cheaper (if anything it'll be more expensive due to lower manufacturing volume), so while Microsoft's strategy looks better at the start of the generation, Sony's will pull ahead significantly soon.
Backwards Compatibility means that you'd be able to use gen 4 and 5 chips in either console, but on Xbox there's the added complication of adapting it to their proprietary interface, and both consoles will be limited to the speed of their storage interface. This means that Xbox Series is limited to gen 3 speeds (which it currently reaches) and PlayStation 5 is limited to gen 4 speeds (which it's approaching, and has a theoretical maximum speed of double gen 3) so when gen 5 starts to become mainstream (with again double the theoretical speed of gen 4) then NAND packages and controllers that saturate both previous generation interfaces should be pretty cheap, meaning that you're paying the extra with Xbox to get half as fast storage in a proprietary form factor.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 440
@TheArt I mean I've got about a month and I don't work, so I wasn't planning to rush anything
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 440
Playing Red Dead Redemption 2 before it disappears from Plus Extra. Can't say it feels like the masterpiece everyone says it is yet, but I'm only on chapter 2 so far.
Re: Video: Top 10 PS5 Platinums for Beginners
@naruball sounds like one of many knowledges
Re: Sony's Death Stranding Special Delivered to PC Game Pass on 23rd August
Wake me up when a PS5 exclusive makes it to PC within 2 years - we get the same outrage with every PC port of a PS4 game, and people prophesising day one PC releases of first party games.
Not that I'd be against it personally, but I don't think monetising the previous generation's games to people who haven't bought the console when given almost it's entire lifespan in which to do so speaks to that as a strategy.
Re: Devolver Debunks Ludicrous Rumour Claiming Sony Paid to Keep Cult of the Lamb Off Xbox Game Pass
@get2sammyb you should see the shiz we have to put up with in the World of Darkness Discord RE Bloodlines 2
Re: Poll: Is PS Plus Premium Good Enough?
For me Premium was never going to be a good value proposition, and Extra is where it's at - I haven't owned a PlayStation before the PS5 so I'm not interested in nostalgia from games I either never played, or are in my Steam library already, and I'm not interested in streaming stuff I could just as easily play locally.
That said, those are both things a lot of people are interested in. I would guess there are a lot of awkward issues with who holds copyright for a lot of the back catalogue, but one would hope that they'd be adding first party stuff every month until their entire catalogue is on there. If it was all there day 1 then fair enough, but I don't get the impression that's the case?
The streaming isn't nothing though, as for those who share a PlayStation, or even don't have one, it means you can play on PC.
Re: Poll: Are You Happy with Your PS Plus Extra, Premium Games for August 2022?
I'm not really looking forward to playing these (along with 20+% of readers), but it's fine, there's tonnes in the library it released with which I'm yet to play, some of which expire soon, and this month's Essential was pretty good too, so when you consider what I have access to this month, rather than what's added, it's pretty good)
Re: This Unity Tech Demo Running on PS5 Is Super Impressive, and We Ain't Lion
It's pretty, sure, but how buggy is this version going to be? I love how easy it is to get going with Unity but it has never been as a stable or extendable as Unreal, and once you've written everything in C# it's hard to port to another engine so you're locked in.
Re: A New Fatal Fury / Garou Game Has Been Announced
@Juanalf so they can hire people to work on it, this announcement isn't for us
Re: Beat It, PS Vita! Marvel's Spider-Man PC Will Fully Support Steam Deck
@nessisonett I'd disagree, but I don't want it from my gaming hardware 😉
Re: Uh Oh! Square Enix Demands Removal of Leaked Tomb Raider Script from Patreon
I feel like maybe they do understand the Streisand Effect, and see the opportunity to get a tonne of marketing for the cost of a DMCA takedown notice
Re: The Last of Us 2 Is 'One of the Greatest Games Ever Made' Say Avengers Endgame Directors
It's probably one of the best linear stories in games, and the Russos wouldn't be doing what they do if that wasn't what they value most.
It's not what gets me most excited, but you know, horses for courses and all that?
Re: Video: Did You Know All 20 of These PS5 Tips and Tricks?
Double tapping the home button was a new one to me, and I'd forgotten I could change the capture buttons. Other than that the only one I didn't know is one I'll never use (changing your online status)
Re: PS5, PS4 Finally Go Portable with Officially Licensed PlayStation Backbone One
Meanwhile I have a clip so I can mount my phone to my "spare" Dualsense controller. Works great including all the adaptive triggers and haptic feedback
Re: Gear Up For Some Wetwork in Hitman 3's New Ambrose Island Map, Available Now
I'll probably return to do this at some point, but I've got many other games I want to play more right now
Re: Stray Is a Meowsive Hit Judging By Day One Concurrent Numbers
I'm leaving it a few days in the hopes that some of the jank mentioned in reviews gets fixed, but I do kinda want to dive in already
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? - Issue 435
I've been playing Empire of Sin via Plus Extra. It feels like it's so close to being a good game but it's missing something I can't quite put my finger on. It's odd because I love turn based tactics, and I love the 20s mob theme.
I'll likely start Red Dead Redemption 2 next
Re: PS Stars' Digital Collectibles Are 'Definitely Not' NFTs, Sony Stresses
@Ogbert this exactly. Not to mention how environmentally irresponsible NFTs and proof-of-work cryptocurrency is, when for most things all you need is a simple database (sure that centralises it, but for games you need the developer to make stuff part of the game anyway).
Re: An Early Build of Skate 4 has Leaked, and the Developers Have Asked Fans Not to Play It
@Mikey856 Man, these anti piracy ads are getting really mean.
https://youtu.be/ALZZx1xmAzg
Re: Horizon Forbidden West Has Its First GOTY Award Already
@Constable_What @Tecinthebrain
A year can also be any period of 12 months, Develop: Brighton run theirs in the summer, rather than the winter, and consider the games released during the preceding 12 months.
Edit: just saw that themightyant already made this point, but somehow not all the comments had loaded.
Re: Reaction: We Need to Talk About PS Plus Premium
I am only subscribed to Extra, rather than Premium, because almost everything that appeals to me is on Extra. There's maybe 2 games on Premium currently that I want to play more than anything in my existing backlog, so either when I'm done with my backlog, or more likely a couple of months before I'm due to renew, I'll upgrade to Premium, play those, and then let me sub lapse and resub back at Extra, which is astonishingly good value for money.
Re: Gaming Spend Will Continue to Decline in US as Living Costs Increase, Says NPD Report
@The_Moose An opinion piece in an American publication by a Conservative commentator? You're going to have to try harder.
It's widely acknowledged that they're Social Democracies and I have multiple friends who live in Denmark, Sweden, Norway who either moved there, or returned there after spending years in the UK, specifically because of Socialist welfare policies and more representative democratic systems.
Re: The Latest PS5 Firmware Update Is Available to Download Now
I'm glad they still said the thing
Re: Gaming Spend Will Continue to Decline in US as Living Costs Increase, Says NPD Report
@nessisonett do you think it's worth pointing out to @GreatAuk how much better Nordic countries are doing under Democratic Socialism versus our Conservative and Unionist Party's austerity policies that have resulted in one of the largest tax burdens in the world, rampant inequality which UN special rapporteurs have described as human rights violations, and the most corruption the UK has ever seen?
Re: Feature: What Are Your Most Anticipated PS5, PS4 Games for the Rest of 2022?
@The_Pixel_King that's almost exactly my list, except instead of TLOU remake I went for Midnight Suns
Re: Poll: Are You Happy With Your PS Plus Essential Games for July 2022?
I can imagine it would be great if I had Crash-based nostalgia, but as it is I'm just waiting to see what'll be added to Extra
Re: Insanely Deep PC Strategy Game Rim World Comes to PS4 Next Month
@jcvandan it's certainly a title where I'll wait for a deep sale or an appearance on Extra. If I was that interested in playing it [enough to pay those prices] I'd have done so on Steam years ago.
Re: First Photo of PSVR2 in the Flesh Emerges
Personally I'm really hoping that there will be hybrid games where, for instance in a third person Open World I can play the majority on a flat screen, but if I get into a car I can put on my headset and have a vr driving experience (because I have yet to pay an Open World game in which I can reliably do a three point turn, reverse around a corner, bay park or parallel park without hitting things or mounting the curb, despite doing these things on a regular basis. Driving fast should feel dangerous, etc etc etc)
Re: Horizon Netflix Show Will Be Called Horizon 2074, Crew Includes Talent From The Boys, The Expanse
@Vacuumator He plays Silens in the Horizon games, was Hatch in Quantum Break, as well as being famous for shows such as The Wire, etc
Re: UK Sales Charts: Only Three Top 10 Games Are Available on PlayStation
@munstre I think the main reason it's hanging around in the top 10 is that a large part of its market want to play it on PS5, maybe don't realise they'd get a free upgrade when they can find a console, and this means that instead of selling most of its units in the launch window, it's a much slower drip than most franchises get to see. Similar to how Miles Morales was right up to the announcement the it would be free with Plus Extra.
Obviously none of us can know for certain, but given how few bundled units there are out there in any given month, and the success of the first game, it seems like a much more likely scenario.
Re: Talking Point: What PS Plus Games for PS5, PS4 Do You Want This Month? (July 2022)
I'd like them to add some single player games, something that's not already available or something that's due to expire soon from the higher tiers (like Red Dead).
Knowing Sony's current way of doing things though, it'll probably be Horizon Zero Dawn, an obsolete Mortal Kombat or Street Fighter game, and something full of microtransactions, i.e worse than nothing.
Re: A Handful of Games Separate PS Plus Extra, Premium Lists in USA, Europe
I have to admit the only games I feel like I'm missing out on here are from the ResE series
Re: Sony Invites You to Find Your Zone on 28th June
@nessisonett Hash-tag not all gamers? 🤣